The present disclosure relates generally to equipment utilized and operations performed in conjunction with a subterranean well and, in an embodiment described herein, more particularly provides for shunt tube flowpaths extending through swellable packers.
Shunt tubes are used in gravel packing operations to facilitate even distribution of gravel in an annulus between well screens and a wellbore. In some circumstances, it is desirable to close off the annulus between well screens after the gravel packing operation (for example, to provide isolation between gravel packed zones).
Packers can be used to close off the annulus between well screens, but certain problems must be overcome in order to utilize such packers and shunt tubes in a single trip multi-zone gravel packing operation. For example, communication should be provided between shunt tubes on opposite sides of a packer, and this communication should be ceased after the gravel packing operation is completed, in order to provide for isolation between the opposite sides of the packer.
The use of valves made of swellable material and positioned within the shunt tubes on opposite sides of a packer has been proposed. However, such valves restrict flow through the shunt tubes. It has also been proposed to extend the shunt tubes through the interior of a base pipe of the packer, but this restricts flow and access through the interior of the base pipe.
Therefore, it may be seen that improvements are needed in the art of extending shunt tube flowpaths through packers and controlling flow through the flowpaths.